Wednesday, July 22, 2015

Recording: Mdou Moctar

Artist: Mdou Moctar

Song: two unknown songs*

Recorded at Harbourfront Centre (W------ Stage), July 11, 2015.

Mdou Moctar - unknown #1

Mdou Moctar - unknown #2

Tuareg guitarist Mdou Moctar is best known for his appearances on Sahel Sounds' Music from Saharan Cellphones compilations, where his guitar work is accompanied by drum machine rhythms and auto-tuned vocals. (A fuller approach emerges on the recently-released Akounak Tedalat Taha Tazoughai soundtrack.) In a live setting, the music was presented in a more straight-ahead manner, with Moctar backed by a rhythm guitarist and a (rather excellent) drummer. That put this gig closer to what you might hear from, say, fellow Nigerien Bombino, with songs stretching out and settling into some amazing grooves, pulling off this amazing trick of having huge momentum while holding steady melodically. Moctar didn't accompany that with a flashy stage show (dancer nothwithstanding), but this was extraordinarily accomplished for one so young — it's hard to fathom to think how much more he might develop yet.

* Does anyone know the titles to these? Please leave a comment!

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